Cooking and Photography and Stuff
Archive for the ‘Baking’ Category: Saturday, December 26th, 2009
Well, I didn’t take a picture of the yule log that I made, like I said I would mostly because I’m silly and would rather eat food than photograph it most of the time. HOWEVER… in case anyone is interested in making one for next holiday season, here is the one I used and LOVED from AllRecipes.com:
Serves 12
CAKE BATTER:
5 eggs, separated
1 cup sugar, divided
1/2 cup cake flour
1/4 cup baking cocoa
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
MOCHA CREAM FILLING:
1 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons instant coffee granules
MOCHA BUTTER CREAM FROSTING:
1/3 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup baking cocoa
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon brewed coffee
2 tablespoons milk
Line a 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan with parchment paper; grease the paper. Place egg whites in a small mixing bowl; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. In a large mixing bowl, beat egg yolks on high until light and fluffy. Gradually add 1/2 cup sugar, beating until thick and lemon-colored. Combine flour, cocoa and salt; gradually add to egg yolk mixture until blended.
Beat egg whites on medium until foamy. Add cream of tartar; beat until soft peaks form. Gradually add remaining sugar, beating on high until stiff peaks form. Stir a fourth into chocolate mixture. Fold in remaining egg whites until no streaks remain.
Spread batter evenly in prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 12-15 minutes or until cake springs back (do not over bake). Cool for 5 minutes; invert onto a linen towel dusted with confectioners’ sugar. Peel off parchment paper. Roll up in the towel, starting with a short side. Cool on a wire rack. In a mixing bowl, beat cream until it begins to thicken. Add sugar and coffee granules. Beat until stiff peaks form; chill. Unroll cooled cake; spread filling to within 1/2 in. of edges. Roll up again. Place on serving platter; chill.
In a mixing bowl, beat frosting ingredients until smooth. Frost cake. Using a fork, make lines resembling tree bark.
Oh… what else have I been up too? Oh – I made fish n’ chips for the first time at home for my Christmas dinner while my parents ate crab (while gloating about how tastey it was and “OH! THIS IS SO DELICIOUS!” (I can’t eat shellfish of any kind for fear of potential death)) On top of this I made the Butternut Squash, Kale, and Cheddar Bread Pudding dish I ripped from Bon Appetit. Banana pudding also made it in there somewhere… had that for breakfast this morning.
I also developed 2 rolls of film recently. Good ol’ me didn’t realize that I didn’t have enough negative sleeves to put the negatives in, so they’re sort of hanging in my room at the moment looking awesome. But really, they need sleeves. Soon the prints will start happening and I will start trying to sell stuff (one day).
Oh! And day two of my Doctor Who season four marathon continued today. Three more episodes left before I allow myself to watch the ever coveted Christmas Special (possibly the last one before the new Doctor arrives?). Mr. Tennant, I will be sad to see you leave… for real.
Posted in Baking, Cooking, Food, Photography, Recipes, Television Shows | 4 Comments
Monday, October 12th, 2009
While on my fall break in Florida with my cousin, we decided to make one of the most ridiculous cakes ever. I ended up getting impatient which led to a portion of the frosting sagging down the side of the cake – but it was still awesome, so no matter. Really, the thing is HUGE… my cousin and I cut a piece off, split it, and could only eat half of each of our pieces.